Pavement Expert Witness: Bike Path Flaws Contributed to Serious Bike Accident

This case involves a former road in Mississippi which was added to a public park’s bike trail without proper modifications. The road was closed to the public for several years, at which point it was agreed to let the maintenance road become part of the bike path system. At that time, nothing was done to bring the road into conformity with the pavement marking standards of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (“MUTCD”). Sometime after the road was brought into the bike path system, a man was seriously injured when he struck a large pothole in the road. It was alleged that the road should have undergone restoration work in order to bring it up to code with the existing bike path surface.

Expert Witness Response E-006454

I would be happy to review this case. The MUTCD gets updated often and it can certainly be argued that the MUTCD is more relevant by merit of its more recent publication. The requirements contained in this document outline what must be done in order for a bike path surface to be considered safe. Certainly, when integrating an existing stretch of road into a bike path system, that stretch of road has to be brought up to specifications in line with the rest of the bike path system. If there were any dangers to users on this newly integrated stretch of road such as potholes they should be addressed before it is opened to the public.